House of Reps member dies in Lagos

Reports say that Mr Abayomi Ayeola, 59, a member of the
House of Representatives representing Ibeju Lekki Federal Constituency of Lagos
State, is dead.

He is said to have died on Sunday at the popular St.
Nicholas Hospital, Lagos, after a brief illness.

The two-term Reps member had already secured the ticket of
the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to run for a third term in the
coming 2019 elections.

Before his sudden death, his death, Ayeola was the leader of
the Lagos State caucus in the House.

In the meantime, the Nigeria Police Force has asked the
lawmaker representing Kogi West in the National Assembly, Senator Dino Melaye,
to surrender himself for arrest and investigation for attempted culpable
homicide.

It stated that the police operatives deployed in his house
with an arrest warrant will not leave his Abuja residence until they
apprehended him.

The Force spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, said in a statement on
Monday that Melaye had repeated spurned several invitations asking him to
report for an investigation into the alleged shooting of one Sgt. Danjuma
Saliu, attached to 37 Police Mobile Force while on stop-and-search duty along
Aiyetoro Gbede, Mopa Road in Kogi State.

He explained that Melaye and his armed thugs shot and
injured Saliu who is currently on admission at the Federal Medical Centre,
Lokoja.

Police investigators, he said, had invited Melaye through a
letter of invitation dated 23rd July, 2018, signed by the Commissioner of
Police, Kogi State Police Command, and addressed to the Clerk, National
Assembly, Abuja.

Moshood said, “Melaye was asked to report on 26th July, 2018
at the Kogi State Police Command, CIID, Lokoja to answer to a case of criminal
conspiracy and attempted culpable homicide against him under investigation in
the Kogi State Police Command.

“The claim by the Senate President in the media that the
Police did not submit a letter of invitation to the Clerk of the National
Assembly is therefore incorrect as can be seen on the attached letter with
acknowledgment stamp of the Clerk, National Assembly, Abuja, dated 24 July,
2018.”

The Police also tendered copies of pictures of the injured
officer, the invitation letter to Melaye addressed to the Clerk of National
Assembly and the medical report from the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja,
confirming the admission of Sgt. Saliu to the hospital for gunshot injury.

Meanwhile, the National Coordinator, Advocate for Peoples’
Rights and Justice, Victor Giwa, has condemned the police siege and move to
arrest Melaye, describing it as an abuse of his rights.

The activist in a statement asked the police to follow the
proper procedure laid down by the law if the lawmaker was needed to answer to
any charges.

He added, “As an organisation, we see the continuous
occupation of the residence of Senator Melaye as a gross violation of his right
to freedom of movement and personal liberty, as provided in the constitution.

“If the Police need the Senator for any offence or for trial in court, there are proper procedures laid down by the law to follow, anything outside that is persecution. We, therefore, insist that we shall mobilize our allies as civil society to resist any form of intimidation or harassment by the police. An injustice to one is an injustice to all.”

Maritime First Newspaper is a liberal Nigeria maritime online news aggregator and blog. The site offers news, blogs, and original content that covers maritime, politics, business, entertainment, health and safety, interviews, popular media, and local news.
For Inquires: 08023148914, 08069749755